


i wanna know you and i wanna love you

by spider_momo



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff and Humor, Kageyama Tobio is babie, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, Other characters mentioned - Freeform, Pining, Pining Hinata Shouyou, Romance, Third Year Hinata Shouyou and Kageyama Tobio, Volleyball Dorks in Love, hinata goes from 'no homo' to 'marry me' real quick, in which the 'b' in kagehina's bromance slowly fades as the story progresses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:07:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24657328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spider_momo/pseuds/spider_momo
Summary: But, seriously, why was Shoyo so nervous? It was just Bakageyama and it wasn’t like he was confessing or anything. Just asking to hang out, like friends do. Totally normal.“Kageyama-kun!” Shoyo's hand reaches out, latching onto the fabric of Kageymama’s team jacket. Kageyama pauses and stares at Shoyo, head cocked to the side, waiting for a response. Too bad for Shoyo his mouth and hand move faster than his brain.“...Yes?” Kageyama prompts when Shoyo is standing there, clutching onto Kageyama's jacket and panicking.“Did you...did you want to go see a movie?” Way to go, Shoyo, you couldn’t be any lamer if you tried.---Shoyo spends the day with Kageyama, not because he's in love or anything but because Kageyama is just so damn mysterious. The cat's (crow's?) curiosity brought it satisfaction or however the saying goes.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio
Comments: 43
Kudos: 538





	i wanna know you and i wanna love you

**Author's Note:**

> my first haikyuu fic because i'm in the kagehina soulmates mindset.
> 
> basically my mind, at 3AM, had the epiphany that kageyama is the BABY Brother and then i wrote this entire fic because i thought of a single line of dialogue and bc i was emo about being deprived of third year kagehina. 
> 
> anyway, this entire thing is just kagehina being dorks in love and hinata having stupid, ridiculous thoughts and i had so much fun writing it. enjoy!

Shoyo notices pretty early on that Kageyama completely and utterly _sucks ass_ at taking care of other people. 

His social skills are blunderingly awkward on good days and crude and insensible on most days. Kageyama can hardly offer words of encouragement without looking like he’s six days constipated. Any reminders to look after one’s well-being come off as insulting and ridiculing. Kageyama can barely even _smile_ _on purpose_ without it looking like he’s secretly imagining bashing your face in with a volleyball. 

Still, Shoyo knows that despite being terrible at being conventionally supportive and caring, Kageyama _does_ care. Looking past Kageyama’s epic lack of social skills, he does care deeply for his teammates, in his own socially-awkward-Bakageyama way. 

So, Shoyo’s learnt to take a water bottle chucked at his head as Kageyama’s reminder to _stay hydrated!_ and his low hums and stilted slaps on the back as _nice work!_ and it has vastly decreased his historic knee-jerk reaction of blowing up and starting a fight with Kageyama. Shoyo, being the emotionally intelligent one of the duo, has by now learned to accept that Kageyama excels in things like volleyball and glaring menacingly at people and is a little slow in the healthy communication department. 

In fact, Shoyo proudly totes himself as Resident Kageyama Interpreter, having to on several occasions quell the nervousness of the first-years by assuring them _no, Kageyama is not planning to suffocate you in your sleep because you messed up a receive, he’s just thinking about how to lure the neighbourhood cats with milk, it’s all good._

While most people else saw Kageyama as the scary, unreadable King of the Court, Shoyo was able to see past the constipated looks and frequent glowering. It was similar to how Shoyo imagined, a zookeeper felt taming a ferocious lion. Not that zookeepers were that cool. They watched a documentary about animal abuse in class the other week and it was pretty depressing which sucked because watching movies in class was supposed to be _fun_ . On second thought, Kageyama didn’t even have lion vibes, maybe like a moody housecat if anything (but weren’t they supposed to be _crows_ anyway?). So, maybe it was less huntsman taming a wild cat and more like Mom-brain understanding baby babble? But that was _super_ lame and weird because Shoyo didn’t want to be Kageyama’s _mom_ , so now Shoyo has to think of a new metaphor. Maybe he could ask Yachi later. Or Takeda-sensei, he taught literature he’d know the appropriate metaphor that fully captured the symbolic relationship between Shoyo and Kageyama. 

_Anyway_ , Shoyo takes quite a bit of pride (however silly it may seem) in being the person that understood Kageyama best.

It wasn’t until some time later Shoyo began to realize that he didn’t know Kageyama as well as he thought he did. 

It was the weekend, a little bit after their Saturday practice session. Now that Shoyo was in his third year, practice didn’t just consist of him _practicing practicing practicing_ until he surpassed his limits. Shoyo now had to engage the first and second years, encourage them and give them tips, figure out how to integrate his current skill set with his new team’s repertoire, while planning how to take both himself and his team further. It wasn’t the easiest thing and Shoyo realized how much he had taken for granted his time with his own senpais during first year. But volleyball was a team sport and Shoyo had grown to love being a part of a team.

Especially Kageyama’s team.

While Shoyo was still very certain of the fact that the reason he was put upon this Earth was to finally _destroy_ Kageyama in an official game of volleyball, he had to admit there was a thrill that came with being on Kageyama's team. Shoyo was sure that no matter how much older he got, how much the people and places around him changed, that he would never grow tired of spiking one of Kageyama’s tosses.

Shoyo wondered if Kageyama felt the same way about tossing to Shoyo. He glances over to his left where Kageyama was walking alongside him and couldn’t help but to stare. 

It was already past lunchtime, nearing the mid-afternoon, but the two had decided to go grab a proper meal together after practice. They walk down the uneven road, bare ankles brushing against the overgrown weeds on the side. It was quiet, the sounds of trees rustling in the late spring wind and the soft chirps of little birds fluttering around. Kageyama stares straight ahead, taking sips of his sports drink every now and then, his mind undoubtedly preoccupied with the thought of lunch.

He pays no attention to the way Shoyo catalogues his facial features, memorizing the curves and slopes like he was going to be tested on it. Shoyo takes in the sharp blue eyes that are framed by long, fluttery lashes, resting beneath dark brows that curved into a high nose bridge. Shoyo takes in Kageyama’s soft, pale skin, wondering if it would be as cool after a few hours spent sweating. Shoyo trails his eyes upward, a little jealous that Kageyama was _still_ growing even though he was tall enough already (the injustices never cease), locking onto Kageyama’s inky locks of hair. It's shorter than it had been in first year, bangs now more even and resting a bit above his eyebrows. It's also totally unfair, Shoyo decides, that people with faces like Kageyama’s could just sport any hairstyle they wanted. Shoyo’s mind wanders, wondering what Kageyama would look like with a buzzcut or perhaps even bald. _Too much forehead_ , Shoyo decides. Yes, Kageyama’s forehead was a rare sight, not one to be shown off to the world so carelessly. 

“What?” Shoyo jumps, eyes refocusing and noticing Kageyama was staring at him, both of them have stopped walking.

“Huh?” He didn’t say any of that stuff aloud, did he? Did Kageyama know Shoyo spent an absurd amount of time thinking about his hair now? How was Shoyo supposed to play this off like it was a normal thing friends did? Maybe if he talks about Yamaguchi’s hair or Yachi’s hair too, it’d be less weird? Yachi had nice hair too, it’d be way less weird then, right?

“You’re _staring_ ,” Kageyama scowls, annoyance clear as day. Shoyo relaxes a little. Annoyed Kageyama was familiar territory, at least.

“You cut your hair,” Shoyo finds himself saying anyway, despite having wanted to steer the conversation as far away from Kageyama’s hair as possible, lest he slips up even more. “It’s...different.”

Kageyama’s hand drifts towards the top of his head, fingers brushing against the hair above his ear. Kageyama lowers his hand and continues walking forward. 

“Onee-chan usually cuts it for me but she was out of town and it was getting too long,” is the only explanation Kageyama offers. 

“Oh,” Shoyo speeds up to catch up with Kageyama, walking side by side once again. He’s about to move on, ask about lunch or volleyball (safe topics!) when Kageyama’s words play through his mind again.

“You have an older sister?” Shoyo exclaims, leaning in closer like this is some scandalous gossip.

“Yes?” Kageyama eyes Shoyo warily. 

“Why didn’t I know about this?” Shoyo nearly shouts, hand latching onto Kageyama’s bicep as if he needed something to ground him or the excitement of Kageyama’s mysterious older sister will blow him away. 

“It never came up,” Kageyama shrugs. And Shoyo supposes that’s true. Kageyama isn’t one to talk about his family, not like Shoyo always rambling about a new dish his mom made or Natsu’s latest art projects… But they’re going on their third year of friendship and Shoyo suddenly feels guilty for never having asked, always having been happy enough to just talk on his own. Shoyo realizes there are probably millions of things about Kageyama he doesn’t know, things he hasn’t bothered to learn over the last 2-and-a-bit years. Shoyo is filled with a burning desire to know it all, know everything about Kageyama. His likes, his dislikes, his tiny habits, the little things that make him happy and sad. Everything. He suddenly needs it like he needs the oxygen in the air. 

“What’s her name? How old is she? Does she play volleyball too? What does she look like?” Shoyo lets out a rapid-fire stream of questions, the new desire to be filled with the knowledge of all-things Kageyama Tobio pulsating through his veins. 

“Miwa. 25. She used to. She looks...normal?”

Shoyo is an older brother himself and automatically thinks of Natsu and how tiny and squishy she is. Kageyama and his sister have an _even_ _bigger_ age difference and Shoyo can’t help but to think of a smaller, squishy Kageyama toddling after Big Sister Kageyama, clinging to her with sticky hands and starry eyes, much like Natsu used to follow Shoyo around. 

“Cute!” Shoyo giggles at the imagery. 

Kageyama pauses his steps again, “My sister?”

Shoyo blinks, returning back to the present, “Huh? No. Well, I haven’t seen your sister. She could be cute.” After all, if Kageyama looks like _that_ it’d just be super unfair if his sister wasn’t as pretty too.

Kageyama blanches at that and Shoyo laughs at the way his mouth twitches and the skin around his eyes crinkles a bit as Kageyama attempts to school his face into his usual _slight frown with mild disinterest._

“What? You think your sister is ugly, that’s mean, Kageyama-kun!” 

“I never said she was ugly,” Kageyama scowls, aggressively adjusting the strap of his bag and taking much longer strides than necessary. _Petty_ , Shoyo thinks as he lengthens his own strides to keep up. “Onee-chan looks... _like Onee-chan_ ,” Kageyama says with finality and Shoyo is too busy laughing to inform Kageyama that that’s not a very good description at all. 

The conversation eventually drifts away from Kageyama and back to volleyball, as it always seems to, as the two make their way to the small restaurant near school. The food there was filling and affordable and they both order a bunch of their favourites and end up grabbing food off of each other’s plate, long past the point of even pretending they minded. Shoyo chatters away about his new volleyball shoes, Nationals, the first years with a giant crush on Yachi, and just about everything he hadn’t told Kageyama already. Kageyama, as usual, offers his succinct replies and occasional hums. Not that Shoyo expected Kageyama to suddenly become an open book after sharing _one_ thing about himself, unprompted. Besides, Kageyama had a simple mind; Shoyo was pretty sure his brain only had two switches: volleyball and food. 

Lunch feels like it ends too quickly though. After lunch, they would part ways and Shoyo would have to wait until Monday morning to see Kageyama again. That was a whole day and a half totally wasted, not learning more about Kageyama. 

Shoyo fiddles with the strap of his bag as they exit the restaurant, mind racing to find an excuse to spend more time with Kageyama. His usual excuse was to ask him if he wanted to practice volleyball, but they _just_ came from volleyball practice and while Shoyo was pretty sure Kageyama wouldn’t refuse, he knew not to push their limits so much, so often. It was a little embarrassing how daunting it was to ask Kageyama to just hang out with him. It wasn’t like they never hung out before for non-volleyball reasons. But most of the time someone else would be there, like Yachi during their study sessions, or a whole group of them going out for ice cream, or some guys from Nekoma too when they’d go play video games at Kenma’s place. 

But, seriously, why was Shoyo so nervous? It was just Bakageyama and it wasn’t like he was _confessing_ or anything. Just asking to hang out, like friends do. Totally normal. 

“Kageyama-kun!” Shoyo’s hand reaches out, latching onto the fabric of Kageymama’s team jacket. Kageyama pauses and stares at Shoyo, head cocked to the side, waiting for a response. Too bad for Shoyo his mouth and hand move faster than his brain. 

“...Yes?” Kageyama prompts when Shoyo is standing there, clutching onto Kageyama's jacket and panicking. 

“Did you...did you want to go see a movie?” _Way to go, Shoyo, you couldn’t be any lamer if you tried_. 

Kageyama blinks at Shoyo and Shoyo belatedly retracts his hand, clasping it with his other hand behind his back and plastering a smile onto his face in hopes of looking marginally less weird in front of Kageyama. 

“I have to go home and shower,” Kageyama states. _Right_ , Shoyo should go home and shower too and get some homework done and do some chores because life isn’t just about volleyball and Kageyama and Kageyama’s life is nowhere close to being just volleyball and Shoyo. 

“Oh, yeah that’s oka—”

“After,” Kageyama cuts in, striking blue eyes never wavering from Shoyo’s brown ones, “we could go after,” he says in the way that makes it impossible to guess if it’s a suggestion or a command but Shoyo supposes it doesn’t really matter in this case. 

“Ok!” Shoyo smiles more genuinely, unable to hide his happiness, and he swears he sees Kageyama’s mouth show a ghost of a smile too before he turns away and starts walking home. 

🏐 🏐 🏐

After Shoyo and Kageyama part ways, Shoyo practically sings and skips the entire way home, cheerfully announcing his arrival to his mother as he slips off his shoes. He beelines it to the bathroom to shower, barely remembering to grab a towel on his way. 

It’s in the shower, however, that Shoyo begins to panic. He’s lathering his hair with the good shampoo instead of the usual two-in-one he uses for the sake of saving time, the smell of strawberries and honey wafting around the steamy shower air (and it’s totally a coincidence that Kageyama happens to like the smell of strawberries and honey), when Shoyo realizes he’s going to see a movie with Kageyama. And he kinda already knew that because he literally _asked_ Kageyama to go do that but the implications of such a request did not settle into Shoyo’s mind until now. 

A movie. With Kageyama. _Just_ Kageyama. They’d be alone, together, in a dark theatre. 

Shoyo panicked some more as he rinsed his hair. He’s the one who asked Kageyama so he’d pick the movie right? Shoyo couldn’t remember the last time he went to the theatre, what movies were even out right now? Would Shoyo pay for the tickets and snacks too? No, that’d make it sound like it was a date. Which it _wasn’t_ . Not at all. It was like the _opposite_ of a date and Shoyo wasn’t sure what exactly the opposite of a date was but he was pretty sure that’s what best describes Kageyama and him. 

His panic continues, even as Shoyo steps out of the shower, absentmindedly towelling himself dry. 

_Wait_ , Shoyo has an epiphany. _I can just get Kageyama to pick the movie. That way I’ll know what kind of movies he likes!_

See, it wasn’t some _date_. It was just part of Shoyo’s plan to meticulously catalogue every single fact about Kageyama into his mind. 

Satisfied with his geniusness, Shoyo finishes drying his hair and changes into some casual clothes. He drinks a glass of cold water and then says bye to his mom before slipping on some sneakers and heading out the door. 

_Totally, not a date. Just two guys hanging out. Super casual._

🏐 🏐 🏐

It’s unreasonable, Shoyo thinks a little irritatedly, that Kageyama looks _that_ good on their non-date. 

Shoyo sees him standing outside the theatre, a long-sleeve white shirt tucked into ripped jeans that ended above his ankles and yeah _super unnecessary_ how nice and long Kageyama’s legs were. 

Shoyo greets him with his normal enthusiasm and they head inside together, the cool air conditioning of the building providing some relief against the hot sunny weather.

“What movie did you want to see?” Kageyama asks.

“You can pick!” Shoyo offers because the whole reason he came to the theatre was to find out what kind of movies Kageyama like, right?

“I don’t really watch movies, you can pick whatever.” And Shoyo’s not entirely surprised by that, but still, he expected Kageyama to have _some_ preference. Shoyo sighs and looks up to see that Kageyama is looking at Shoyo expectantly and Shoyo realizes that means _he_ has to pick the movie. 

“Uh, right! You go get snacks and I’ll get tickets!” Shoyo gives Kageyama a thumbs up, before turning around and quickly scanning the available movie options and times. He doesn’t recognize most of them, not being much of a movie person himself. But he has to pick _something_ and preferably something not awful or Kageyama will think Shoyo’s taste in movies is awful and then think his taste in everything else is awful too. 

His eyes finally land on something that sounds familiar and he’s pretty sure it’s a movie he heard Yachi talking about the other day. Yachi is the smartest person Shoyo knows so her indirect suggestion _must_ be good. When it’s his turn at the counter he asks for two tickets for the next showing before heading back to Kageyama.

Kageyama has finished buying the snacks, a bucket of popcorn, some gummy candy, and two drinks and leans against a wall, waiting for Shoyo. Shoyo does his best to ignore the way his heart does a funny squeezing thing when he sees Kageyama. 

“Ready?” Shoyo bounces up next to him, leading Kageyama to the correct auditorium. 

It’s not until Shoyo and Kageyama enter the auditorium that Shoyo realizes he may have messed up. The auditorium is only about half full, but Shoyo quickly notices that most people are sitting in pairs, a guy sitting next to a girl, or a few small groups of girls… 

_Okay, no need to jump to conclusions_ , Shoyo calms himself as Kageyama (who seems oblivious as ever) and he heads up the stairs to their seats. _You’re just being sexist_ , Shoyo scolds himself, _just because a bunch of girls are here doesn’t mean it’s a romantic-girly movie—_

“I heard this movie is _so romantic_ _!_ ”

“I wish I had a boyfriend to come see it with.” 

“No way! I heard the lead actor is _super_ _dreamy_ , my boyfriend would get so jealous if I brought him!” 

Shoyo bites his cheeks to stop himself from groaning in embarrassment. Great, Kageyama is going to think Shoyo brought him to see some lovey-dovey movie and is going to be so weirded out he’ll never want to interact with Shoyo outside of volleyball again and Shoyo will have to live the rest of his life in shame and humiliation. 

Shoyo sneaks a peak to his left where Kageyama is seated, quietly sipping his iced tea. He didn’t _look_ weirded out. Right, Kageyama is a dense idiot with a volleyball for a brain. He probably wouldn’t even notice anything was up. And if he did...well there was nothing _wrong_ with two guys watching a romantic movie, right? Movies were just movies. Besides, Shoyo _did_ hear Yachi talking about this movie and while Kageyama would make fun of Shoyo he wouldn’t make fun of Yachi’s preferences. It’d be fine. 

The lights dim slightly as the previews begin playing and Shoyo relaxes, taking a sip of his own drink. _Everything will be alright_ , Shoyo reassures himself, taking another quick peek at Kageyama who is watching the ad for some phone deal with a startling amount of concentration. Shoyo muffles his giggles into his shoulder because Kageyama is just _so Kageyama_ , even when at the movies. 

Movies are terrible date ideas, Shoyo quickly decides, when the lights dim all the way and he can no longer see Kageyama’s face properly. Who decided movies were a romantic date idea at all? You can’t see the person’s face, or talk to them properly, and there’s a bunch of people around you, and you’re just sitting in the dark next to them for a couple of hours. That’s super creepy if you think about it. 

Not that he was on a date right now. But not being able to see or talk to Kageyama was putting a damper on his plans to get Kageyama to share more about himself. Shoyo is left with no choice but to turn his attention back to the screen and watch the movie. He guesses sitting next to Kageyama is at least better than no Kageyama around at all. 

🏐 🏐 🏐

The movie actually wasn’t that bad. It _was_ pretty romantic and the lead actor _was_ pretty dreamy but it was also really sad. Like _really_ sad. Why hadn’t those girls warned Shoyo about that part? If he hadn’t been so invested in the movie he probably would have died of embarrassment when Kageyama had to offer him a slightly crumpled napkin to wipe his tears away. Shoyo was more than a little glad it was all dark and stuff so Kageyama wasn’t able to see Shoyo’s teary eyes or flushed cheeks. 

He at least managed to pull himself together by the time the movie ended and the lights turned back on. 

Shoyo stood up, stretching his arms upwards to loosen up his shoulders and back. He turned to face Kageyama who had gathered all their trash and the two of them shuffled into the aisle to clear out of the auditorium.

“So…” Shoyo walks so closely behind Kageyama, he nearly steps on the back of his shoes, “Did you like the movie?” Shoyo tried his best to be casual because even if Kageyama did make fun of him for choosing some heartfelt romance movie at least Shoyo would know Kageyama didn’t like those types of movies. More information for his mental Kageyama Encyclopedia. 

“The girls behind us kept whispering too loudly,” Kageyama states like that’s an answer to Shoyo’s question. 

“Theatres are too noisy,” Shoyo agrees, “Next time, let’s just watch something at home then.” His eyes widen once he realizes what he’s just said. “I mean—”

“Okay,” Kageyama agrees and maybe Shoyo is overanalyzing everything, inviting friends over for a movie isn’t weird or anything, after all. Kageyama tosses the napkins into the compost and the wrappers into the trash as they exit the auditorium, heading out into the lobby, “You can pick again.”

_So, you_ did _like the movie_ , Shoyo thinks smugly. He doesn’t say it aloud, not wanting to ruin his future prospects of watching another movie with Kageyama (like _alone_ alone next time!), only smiling brightly and skipping up ahead of Kageyama. 

It’s already the evening by now; everything is dimmer, the sun hangs lower in the sky, the few wispy clouds hanging around have a reddish-orange glow to them. A cool breeze blows past them as the two of them exit the theatre, heading onto the sidewalk.

As much as Shoyo wants today to keep going, he knows he can’t monopolize all of Kageyama’s time.

The two of them silently head back, walking side by side. And if Kageyama notices how Shoyo is walking a bit slower than usual, he doesn’t comment, only shortens his strides to match Shoyo's speed. 

The sun dips lower in the sky, getting closer and closer to the horizon. 

Shoyo huffs in frustration; why doesn’t he know what to say now? Any other day he’d have no problem talking Kageyama’s ears off but today Shoyo just wants to hear Kageyama talk, talk about anything really. Whatever stupid thoughts come to Kageyama’s stupid mind, Shoyo wants to be the one to listen to them. Shoyo lets out another sigh; one day with Kageyama isn’t fulfilling enough, not even close. 

“Why do you keep sighing?” Kageyama asks, bumping his arm into Shoyo’s shoulder to steer him in the right direction when Shoyo is about the head straight when they need to make a right. 

“Huh?” Shoyo hums, “M’not sighing.”

“You’ve sighed like four times in the last two minutes.”

“Have not!”

“Have _too_.”

“Why are you even keeping track of something like that?”

“Because it’s loud and annoying.”

Shoyo _hmphs_ and it’s _not_ another sigh, so Kageyama can stop giving him such a pointed look. 

“So,” Kageyama nudges him again, “what’s wrong?” 

Shoyo watches from the corner of his eye how Kageyama is staring at him, waiting for an answer. The look in his eyes is so expectant and sincere that Shoyo almost blurts out something stupid like _I don’t want you to go because I’m going to miss you_. 

Now _that_ would have been a disaster and Shoyo mentally congratulates himself for keeping his mouth shut for once. 

But staying silent also meant he didn’t answer Kageyama’s question: “Hinata! Quit ignoring me, dumbass!” Shoyo yelps when Kageyama flicks at his temple, hand shooting up to press against the assaulted skin. 

“Nothing! Nothing’s wrong,” Shoyo insists but Kageyama obviously doesn’t believe him. Shoyo wants to sigh again but he’s sure Kageyama will punch him if he does it one more time. Kageyama continues to stare down Shoyo so Shoyo averts his gaze, humming as casually as he can. His eyes land on a small konbini, its lights warmly glowing in the slowly darkening streets. 

“If you’re that worried about me, buy me some ramen!” Shoyo grins, hands latching onto Kageyama's bicep and dragging him into the shop, the bell ringing above them as they push through the door. 

Kageyama glares at him as Shoyo pulls him along to the instant noodle aisle, huffing a bit when Shoyo releases him to examine the ramen. 

“Hmm, which kind should I get?” Shoyo hums, index finger tapping against his cheek like he’s in deep thought. In reality, he’s watching Kageyama in his peripheral vision, admiring the way his hair got a little ruffled and his shirt a little lopsided from when Shoyo manhandled him. Kageyama crosses his arm, glaring at the bright ceiling lights above because he’s a weirdo like that. 

“This will do,” Shoyo announces after a moment, reaching for some generic chicken flavoured ramen only for Kageyama to slap his hand down.

“Get the spicy one,” Kageyama demands, his own hands already reaching to grab two cups of the brand they both like. Shoyo has to muster all his willpower not to giggle at the cute pout on Kageyama’s face.

“Well, since you’re paying,” Shoyo agrees with a smile. Kageyama shoots him another glare but doesn't object. 

“Drinks?” Shoyo points at the back of the shop to the refrigerator section. He grabs Kageyama’s elbow again, humming merrily. 

Kageyama grabs some milk without hesitation while Shoyo scans all the options before grabbing some peach flavoured tea. Kageyama says nothing as Shoyo continues to cling to him as he graciously pays (the whole 1000 yen) and the attendant brings hot water for their ramen. They head outside, to the small round metal table and with matching metal benches, to eat their piping hot ramen. The temperature continues to drop outside as the sun slowly begins to set. It’s still pretty nice out though, and Shoyo doesn’t mind the cool breezes brushing past him when he has some steaming noodles in front of him. 

“I bet I can finish mine first!” Shoyo challenges Kageyama, who doesn’t bother responding and immediately shovels some noodles into his mouth with his wooden chopsticks. Shoyo grins and follows suit. 

While stupid competitions like this are normal between Shoyo and Kageyama...maybe a speed eating competition wasn’t the best idea for spicy ramen. 

Shoyo’s eyes water, his face feels hot, and his tongue burns from both the hotness and the capsaicin. But a quick glance at Kageyama shows that the other boy isn’t faring that much better. 

It only takes them a few minutes to finish off all the noodles and tip back the ramen bowl to finish off the remaining broth (because neither of them are _quitters_ ). Kageyama finishes first only because Shoyo chokes on the spicy, oily broth but Shoyo’s tongue and sinuses hurt too much to care about a lost victory right now. 

Shoyo untwists the cap to his drink, gulping down the cool, sweet liquid to ease the burning sensation in his throat, wiping away some stray tears with the back of his other hand. Shoyo didn’t even notice Kageyama had gotten up until he’s putting down another carton of milk in front of Shoyo’s who’s emptied his peach tea bottle already. Shoyo gingerly picks up the milk, the front has a cartoon cow smiling up at him. 

“Drink it,” Kageyama nods at the milk as he sits back down, across from Shoyo, and takes a slow sip from his own milk carton. Shoyo grabs the straw, unwrapping it hastily before jamming it into the hole on top, and takes a long sip, this time allowing the cool liquid to sit on his abused tongue for a moment before swallowing. 

“Kageyama-kun!” Shoyo stands, jumping over to where Kageyama sat. He throws his arms around Kageyama, pushing him over so they were both sitting together on the same seat, “when did you get so nice? I’m so touched!” Shoyo sings, taking another sip of his milk, one hand still clutching the fabric on Kageyama’s sleeve. 

“Idiot,” Kageyama elbows Shoyo, raising his straw to his mouth to drink the rest of his own milk. He doesn’t kick Shoyo off his seat though so Shoyo happily sips his milk, butterflies erupting in his stomach at the way his arm presses against Kageyama’s, his elbow brushing against Kageyama’s ribs. Slowly, his mouth feels less fire-y and his stomach lining doesn't feel like it’s going to disintegrate. 

Shoyo is aggressively slurping the last remaining drops, the pressure causing the cardboard to collapse inwards, when he notices Kageyama watching him and pauses, the straw still in his mouth. Kageyama’s eyes lock onto Shoyo’s, his head is propped up on his right palm, torso facing Shoyo. It’s only then that Shoyo realizes how close they’re sitting together and becomes acutely aware of the warmth spreading where their thighs touch, how their arms brush against each other’s with even the slightest movement, how Shoyo can see the reflection of the konbini’s bright lights in Kageyama’s eyes, eyes that are still watching Shoyo.

“Mn?” Shoyo makes a questioning sound, lowering his thoroughly crushed milk carton. 

“Nothing,” Kageyama says and he’s still watching Shoyo and Shoyo feels his face heat up because _why the heck is he watching me like that stupid Kageyama and his stupid, handsome face..._

“Stop—” Shoyo’s arms fly up to cover his reddening face, “stop _looking_ at me like that, oh my god!” Shoyo peaks a look between his fingers and lamentably, Kageyama is _still_ staring at this time with that stupid smug smirk of his. 

“Why?” Kageyama taunts, “I can look at you if I want,” and the bastard has the audacity to lean _even closer_ except Shoyo has no time to continue to be embarrassed since the only thing echoing through his mind is: _Kageyama wants to look at me_. His stomach does a weird flip-flop thing and his chest feels all tingly and warm. Shoyo slowly lowers his arms, face now unobstructed. 

His face feels all warm still and no doubt it’s a bright pinkish-red colour right now. In the back of his mind, Shoyo recalls being young and hating how quickly and brightly his cheeks always flushed, the rosy blush clashing with his orange hair so awfully. But right now, Kageyama is still watching him, eyes sparkling with slight playfulness and also this transparent marvel, and Shoyo decides he doesn’t mind Kageyama staring at him. In fact, Kageyama should never stop looking at Shoyo ever again. 

Shoyo takes the opportunity to stare back, eyes zeroing in on every pretty detail of Kageyama’s face. When exactly was it when staring at Kageyama became such a favoured past time of his? They’ve probably been staring at each other for way too long by now and it’s possible this is also one of their silly unspoken competitions but either way Shoyo sure as hell isn’t looking away first. 

Well, that was the plan but then a car speeds by on the street, it’s headlights flashing way too brightly, and Shoyo jumps up in surprise, nearly falling backwards off the seat. 

When he rights himself, sitting up straight again, Kageyama rolls his eyes at him.

“Loser,” he scoffs but Shoyo is still Resident Kageyama Interpreter and can see the fondness underlying the insult because _subtext_ _baby_.

“Come on,” Kageyama elbows Shoyo, collecting their trash, stacking the ramen cups and scooping up the napkins and wrappers. 

They toss everything into the bins outside the konbini and head down the sidewalk, side by side. 

🏐 🏐 🏐

The sun has set now, disappearing below the horizon, but the skies are mostly clear and it’s still kinda light out. Shoyo tilts his head upwards, looking at the moon and noticing a few twinkling stars resting in the inky-dark part of the sky. The sky looks pretty, transitioning from the dark navy to purple to a mixture of reddish-pinks and yellowy-oranges. 

His day with Kageyama is coming to an end, Shoyo knows that. But Shoyo doesn’t want it to end yet and it’s silly because he’ll see Kageyama Monday morning and then again at lunch and then after school and then again Tuesday and so on. Shoyo knows it’s literally impossible but the little irrational voice in his head wants to spend every single day, every hour, every moment with Kageyama. 

But he can’t; they both have to go home and go eat a proper dinner and do homework and a bunch of other things because the world isn’t just Hinata and Kageyama. It's okay though, Shoyo supposes. Because he still had today with Kageyama and he’ll still get to spike Kageyama’s tosses Monday and that’s enough for now. 

Only a little further to go and then they’ll part, going on separate streets to head to their own homes. There’s a grassy hill to the left of the road, Shoyo can hear the quiet rustling of the overgrown grass in the wind. The atmosphere is serene: the darkening ombre sky, the gentle breeze, the street maps illuminating the road and the soft-looking grass. It looks so inviting that Shoyo is walking over there before he even realizes it, flopping onto his back, limbs stretched on the field. He closes his eyes, relishing in the way the grass tickles his ankles and the back of his head, the quiet sounds of the wind washing over him. 

“What are you doing?” Shoyo cracks an eye open to see a wary-looking Kageyama standing above him. 

“Resting,” Shoyo replies, bringing one leg up to bend at the knee and putting his hands behind his head. Kageyama just stands there and watches, like he’s just going to wait for Shoyo to finish resting and get up again. 

“Don’t just stand there, it’s creepy,” Shoyo laughs and Kageyama reluctantly lies down next to him. “Isn’t the sky pretty?” 

Kageyama studies the sky above him for a moment, brows furrowing ever-so-slightly, “I guess. It doesn’t look that different than any other sunset though.” 

Shoyo supposes that’s true; as far as sunsets go, today’s was pretty standard. Maybe even substandard. 

“Sunrise or sunset?” Shoyo asks.

“Sunrise.”

“Why?”

“The air smells better in the morning.” 

“What’s your favourite smell?”

“Gyms and volleyball leather. Or strawberries and honey.” Shoyo already knew that one. 

“Favourite fruit?”

“Tangerines.” Shoyo bites his lip from commenting on that one.

“What would you do if you didn’t play volleyball or any other sports?”

“I don’t know. I’m not good at anything besides volleyball,” and Kageyama’s response isn’t self-deprecating or anything; he says it like it’s just a simple fact. Volleyball is his everything and he can’t even go so far as to imagine his life without it. 

“I think,” Shoyo says completely earnestly, turning his head to look at Kageyama, “there’s some universe out there where you never played volleyball.” Kageyama turns to look at him too and even under the crepuscular lighting, he still looks so pretty and lovely. 

_Unfair,_ Shoyo thinks but his heart keeps going _ba-bump_ in his chest anyway as he continues to speak, “And you’re probably just a normal person who does normal things and has a bunch of normal hobbies and probably gets better grades and is less grumpy all the time and can actually _smile_ like a normal human being and— _hey!_ ” Shoyo yelps before breaking out into giggles when Kageyama pinches his side. 

“I _hope_ there’s some universe out there where _you’re_ not a total dumbass and aren’t constantly blabbing your mouth off,” Kageyama jabs at Shoyo’s ribs and Shoyo squirms away a little, still laughing into his elbow. 

“I’m glad,” Shoyo says, voice softer after quieting down his laughter, “that I get to live in the universe with grumpy, volleyball-obsessed Kageyama. He’s my favourite Kageyama. _Way_ better than the Kageyama who knows how to smile.” Shoyo turns to face Kageyama properly, unsure if it’s the cool breeze or Kageyama’s piercing eyes that sends a shiver down his spine. 

Kageyama doesn’t say anything for a moment. But then his hand shoots out faster than Shoyo’s eyes can keep track of and Shoyo suddenly feels his face being squished by Kageyama’s hand.

“You’re so embarrassing,” Kageyama narrows his eyes at him, his fingers pressing into the soft flesh of Shoyo’s cheeks. And then Shoyo’s cheeks are released and he’s about to say something but he’s being pulled closer until his face presses against Kageyama’s chest. It takes Shoyo’s brain a moment to realize they’re hugging. Like Kageyama is _hugging_ him. While they’re laying in some grassy field at night, no one to see them except for maybe the bugs in the grass. 

_Wait, stop thinking about bugs, you’re ruining the moment…_

“Dumbass Hinata,” Shoyo hears Kageyama mutter but he tactfully declines to comment on _which of them is the embarrassing one_ now _, HUH_ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) _??_ because Kageyama’s shirt is nice and soft and smells like really nice and his chest is so warm and Shoyo really ( _really_ ) likes how Kageyama’s hand is raking through the hair on the back of Shoyo’s head. 

And plus, Kageyama just really sounds like he’s _going through it_ and Shoyo is still a good friend and not about to call him out on that. 

Kageyama (unfortunately) pulls away after a few seconds and even in the dim light Shoyo can tell his face is flushed an impressive shade of red. Shoyo is, as aforementioned, a _good_ friend and doesn’t let any embarrassment or awkwardness linger in the air. He bounces up onto his feet, pulling Kageyama up too. 

Shoyo takes a breath and turns to look at Kageyama, “Race ya?” 

Kageyama grins at him before taking off in front of Shoyo, like the evil little cheater he is. Shoyo catches up quickly, grinning at the way the cold air whips at his face, the thudding sound of the shoes hitting the pavement, the way his heart rate goes up and up. 

After a couple hundred metres, Shoyo pulls up ahead of Kageyama, getting a decent lead. But then he feels his foot land wrong, maybe he stepped on a rock or a crack, and then he’s tumbling to the ground, barely throwing his arms in front of him in time to brace his fall. 

“ _Ouch_ ,” Shoyo mutters in a weak voice, slowly pulling himself up to his knees and hands. 

“Dumbass!” he hears Kageyama scolding him but his voice sounds a little far away, Shoyo’s heart beating too loudly in his ears for anything to sound right.

Shoyo is busy blinking away the blurry dots that appear in his vision, so he can’t really see what’s going one but he can feel Kageyama’s hands pulling him into a sitting position, inspecting his hands and knees for any cuts or scrapes, all while muttering his favourite mantra of “ _Hinata you dumbass, Dumbass Hinata, Fucking Dumbass Shitty Hinata…”_

When Shoyo’s vision clears up he sees Kageyama sitting in front of him, holding his hands and scowling and calling Shoyo mean names as he aggressively checks over Shoyo for any injuries. Shoyo thinks it may be the most romantic thing he’s ever experienced. 

“Shut up!” Kageyama yells, face turning a deep red again, and Shoyo realizes he said that out loud. Maybe he has a concussion?

“You don’t have a concussion,” Kageyama rolls his eyes, “You didn’t even hit your head. You’re just a dumbass.” 

“Well, you’re the one holding hands with a dumbass, so what does that make you?”

“We’re not holding hands!” Kageyama scowls harder, releasing Shoyo’s hands like they are hot coal, before standing up and glaring off to the side. Shoyo pouts and reaches his hands upwards, silently (and kind pathetically) pleading for Kageyama to help him up, partly because his legs hurt and mostly because he wanted to hold Kageyama’s hands again. And because Kageyama is actually a very nice person beneath all the prickly cactus vibes, he does help Shoyo up to his feet and— 

“ _Ow!_ ” Shoyo lets out an involuntary yelp when he puts pressure onto his right foot, immediately switching all his weight to his left. 

Kageyama grabs his shoulder to steady him, “What’s wrong?”

“Uhh...nothing. I’m fine, let’s go!” Shoyo laughs nervously. Kageyama would never let him hear the end of it if he learnt Shoyo hurt his foot while racing him.

Kageyama narrows his eyes before bending down and inspecting Shoyo’s foot.

“I’m fine, really! It’s not— _ow!_ ” Shoyo winces as Kageyama grabs his right foot, glaring up at Shoyo quite scarily. 

“It’s just a small sprain, at worst! I swear, I’ll be fine by Monday!” Shoyo promises. 

“You _better_ be,” Kageyama mutters, standing upright again. They stare each other down for about a solid minute before Kageyama huffs, hands balled up into tight fists by his side. 

“Get on my back.”

“What?”

“Are you gonna walk home on that foot?” Kageyama stares icily at Shoyo, “You’ll just make it worse. I’ll carry you.”

“Wait, you don’t have to!” Shoyo waves his arms out in front of him, panicking.

“It’s _fine_. Quit making it weird!” Kageyama flicks Shoyo’s forehead. Shoyo ends up climbing onto Kageyama’s back, arms wrapped loosely around his shoulders and neck. Shoyo is unsure of what to do with his legs. Should he just leave them dangling there? Or wrap them around Kageyama’s waist? Would that be too intimate? What makes it easier for Kageyama?

“I said quit making it weird, dumbass!” Kageyama punches Shoyo’s thigh, adjusting his hands so they support Shoyo properly.

“I didn't even say anything!” Shoyo whines.

“I could feel your stupid idiot thoughts, they’re so loud.”

“At least I _have_ thoughts!” 

“Do you _want_ me to drop you in a ditch?” 

“No!” Shoyo pouts and tightens his hold on Kageyama, “I’m injured, you can’t!”

“Idiot,” Kageyama grumbles before walking forward. His foot throbs dully once in a while and Shoyo is grateful Kageyama was kind enough to help him home. His ankle would undoubtedly have gotten much worse if he tried limping home on it. 

It’s quiet again afterwards; Shoyo is lulled into a comforting calmness by the steady rocking of Kageyama’s steps and the gentle sounds of the night breeze. It’s nice and cozy and Shoyo kinda feels bad Kageyama has to carry him up that steep-ass hill but he’s not about to bring that up right now. 

“Hey, Kageyama-kun?”

“What?”

“Sometimes I give Natsu piggyback rides when her feet get tired or when she gets sleepy after eating too much. She never says thank you though. But I guess it’s okay since it’s my job as her big brother and all.” 

Kageyama doesn’t say anything. Shoyo opens his mouth to babble some more meaningless nonsense when Kageyama’s hushed voice filters into Shoyo’s ears.

“My sister used to too. When I was a kid. Sometimes I’d fall and scrape my knees so she’d carry me back inside. She’d complain about me getting dirt and blood on her though.” 

Shoyo laughs quietly, his chest trembling slightly against Kageyama’s back, “That sounds like something _you’d_ do too.” Kageyama just huffs but Shoyo is sure if he could see his face, Kageyama would be pouting that pout he insists is _not_ a pout. 

“Ah, I bet you were so cute though. A tiny Kageyama with tiny hands playing volleyball, how cute!” 

“Shut up,” Kageyama mumbles half-heartedly. 

“I feel sad for your sister though.”

“Why?” Kageyama asks suspiciously. 

“Well, she probably can’t give you piggyback rides anymore since you’re all tall and heavy now.” Kageyama knocks his head back into Shoyo’s chin in retaliation. 

“Meanie! I was being serious. I think I’d cry for a whole week if Natsu outgrew me one day.”

“Well, it’s not like it’s _hard_ to outgrow _you_.”

“Rude! You don’t get it, you’re not an older sibling. Ha! You’re the _baby_ of your family. No wonder you’re such a brat!” 

“Shut up, dumbass!” 

“You’re even the youngest third year! Eternal Baby Kageyama.” 

“I’ll drop right now. Right in that muddy ditch.”

“No! No! I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” Shoyo laughs, wrapping his legs and arms tightly around Kageyama. He rests his cheek on top of Kageyama’s head, satisfied when Kageyama keeps walking. 

“Hey, Kageyama-kun?” Shoyo asks again after a few minutes of quiet. 

“What?”

“Thanks for being my friend,” Shoyo says with a yawn. Today’s events begin to catch up on him and Kageyama’s warmth brings him to a state of relaxed peacefulness. “And for being nice to me. You’re a good person.” 

Shoyo’s pretty sure people don’t tell Kageyama he’s nice or a good person all that often. Maybe because they don’t know, they don’t see how much Kageyama cares and how hard he tries to understand other people. But if Shoyo is one of the people that do see how good of a person Kageyama is, he’ll just have to be the one who reminds Kageyama more often. With great power comes great responsibility or whatever. 

“You’re...a good person too?” Kageyama says, voice a little confused and unsure. Shoyo shakes with silent laughter. 

“Kageyama-kun,” Shoyo whines, “stop being so adorable. What if I fall in love with you?”

“Oh...well, some things can’t be helped I guess.” 

“Kageyama-kun!” Shoyo gasps, “You can’t say that stuff when I can’t see your face. It’s cheating!” Shoyo puts his head on Kageyama’s shoulder, trying to get a better look at his face. Kageyama’s profile is infuriatingly calm and blank though. 

“Is something wrong?” Kageyama asks and Shoyo can hardly believe he has the audacity. Shoyo narrows his eyes at Kageyama before thinking of a plan of revenge. 

“Nope!” Shoyo smiles vindictively before pressing a quick kiss to Kageyama’s cheek. It’s pretty satisfying the way he can feel Kageyama’s whole body freeze up. It’s a shame the murky streetlights don’t provide enough light for Shoyo to see what shade of red Kageyama’s face and ears turn. 

“Who’s cheating now?” He hears Kageyama mumble, adjusting Shoyo’s weight before continuing forward. Shoyo gleefully begins to hum a peppy tune as Kageyama turns onto Shoyo’s street. 

The sky is completely dark now, a solid blueish-black colour. It’s kinda cold now too so Shoyo is quite glad he’s plastered to Kageyama’s warm back. Sadly, they reach his house though, Kageyama pushing open the front gate and walking to the front door. He gently slides off of Kageyama and blocks the front door with his body.

“You can’t come in!” Shoyo says hurriedly. 

Kageyama tilts his head in confusion, eyes one part puzzled and one part irritated, “Why not?”

“You _can’t_ ,” Shoyo insists.

“I’ve been in your house before. I _know_ your room is always a mess.”

“That’s not the point!” 

“How are you going to get up to your room with that foot?” Kageyama counters.

“My mom will help me,” Shoyo attempts to shoo Kageyama away. 

“Why are you being such a weirdo?” Kageyama dodges Shoyo’s pushy hands. 

“Because,” Shoyo fidgets, hands tugging on the hem of his shirt, suddenly bashful and nervous, “you’re _supposed_ to say goodbye in front of the door when you walk someone home after a date.”

Kageyama’s face does a lot of funny things after Shoyo says that. Shoyo’s certain he’s never seen someone cycle through embarrassment, happiness, and anger so quickly. 

“I didn’t walk you home, I had to _carry_ you because you're a total space cadet and can’t even watch where you’re going,’ Kageyama pinches Shoyo’s cheek. 

“But the other points still stand?” Shoyo looks up at Kageyama hopefully. 

“You’re the most embarrassing person ever,” is Kageyama’s response but Shoyo obviously takes that as a _yes_. 

“But _you_ went on a date with the most embarrassing person ever, so what does that ma— _mmhph!_ ” Shoyo is quickly and effectively silenced by Kageyama's lips pressing against his own. Sadly, it’s over before Shoyo can even respond and Kageyama is grinning victoriously at him before backing away out of Shoyo’s reach.

“Kageyama-kun, you are an evil, _evil_ person.”

“Make sure you elevate and ice your foot.”

“You can’t just leave like that!” Shoyo cries, reaching his arms forward. But it’s no use. Kageyama backs up even further, smirking his evil smirk at Shoyo. 

“See you Monday, dumbass.”

“You’re not going to visit me tomorrow?” Shoyo pouts. 

“Hmm…” Kageyama ponders over it for a moment, “No.” 

“Mean!”

“Well, _somebody_ kept me out all day. I have stuff to catch up on now.” 

“But I’ll miss you.” Shoyo can tell Kageyama is trying really hard to hide his smile. Kageyama takes some quick strides forward until he and Shoyo are inches apart. His hands rest on Shoyo’s waist and Shoyo’s wrap around Kageyama’s neck. Their second kiss is slower and sweeter and Shoyo’s injured foot pops up in some girly shoujo manga pose but he’s too busy to care right now. It’s not like fireworks like the movies say though; Shoyo thinks it’s more fluttery and warm and soft, like fresh baked cookies on a warm spring day but maybe Shoyo is just hungry still. 

“What’s your favourite type of cookie?” Shoyo immediately asks when they pull apart and yeah probably not the _best_ thing to say after kissing somebody. 

“You’re thinking about cookies? Right now?” Kageyama deadpans. 

“I thought of a cookie metaphor!” Shoyo defends himself. “Besides, cookies are amazing which means my brain thinks your kissing was amazing too. Just basic kissing math. It’s like the law of the conversion of mass, right?

Kageyama rolls his eyes but Shoyo sees the hint of a smile tugging on his lips, “Oatmeal with chocolate chips.” 

“Gotcha,” Shoyo nods. “I like double chocolate chip. With walnuts. Alright, you may leave now.” 

“Oh, really?” Kageyama squishes Shoyo’s cheeks with one hand while the other hand holds Shoyo steady by the waist. 

“Yep. I guess I’ll see you Monday since you’re a heartless goblin who won’t visit me tomorrow even though I’m _injured_ —” Shoyo is interrupted again by Kiss #3 and if all of Shoyo’s rambling is going to be stopped with kisses from now on, Shoyo’s pretty sure he’s winning this dating thing. 

“Goodbye,” Kageyama says, pulling away. He plants one last kiss on the top of Shoyo’s head and Shoyo thinks he might be floating right now. 

“Bye,” Shoyo waves, his mind feeling all dreamy and soft and he swears there’s those sparkly bubbles floating around like in those romance manga Yachi reads as he watches Kageyama pass through his front gate. 

“Make sure you rest your foot or I’ll shove the dirtiest volleyball I can find down your throat,” Kageyama calls out and...the bubbles have popped. 

“Leave!” Shoyo shouts at Kageyama. He watches until he can’t see Kageyama any more before turning and unlocking his front door, hobbling inside. He closes the door, sliding back against it, with a dreamy sigh and whimsical smile, replaying the last few minutes in his head again. Monday was too long of a time away, he’d have to convince Kageyama to come over tomorrow.

“Mom!” Shoyo calls out, sitting on the entrance floor to take his shoes off. His ankle doesn’t look that swollen but it still feels tender and sore. He should eat, then go rest, and then spam Kageyama with cute emojis and texts until he gives in. 

“Mooooooooom!” Shoyo calls again, slowly standing up without putting any weight on his injured foot.

“Shoyo, what is it?” His mom appears, brows furrowed.

“Haha, I hurt my ankle,” Shoyo sheepishly scratches his head. His mom enters Worried Mom mode, fussing over him as she helps him sit at the kitchen table. She scolds him for staying out too late and then scolds him again for making Kageyama carry him and then sending him away without letting him in. But she also gives extra servings of the dinner she saved him so she can’t be that mad and she even says okay when Shoyo asks her to make some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies tomorrow. 

Since his mom is so nice and cool (and also because Shoyo is a blabbermouth and needs to tell someone before he bursts), Shoyo tells her there’s a 95% chance he’s like _officially_ dating Kageyama now but then she gets _even more mad_ for sending Kageyama away and tells Shoyo he needs to stop giving Kageyama such a hard time if they’re in a relationship and _what is this blatant favouritism Mom???_

In the end, Shoyo is too giddy to even mind his mother’s betrayal and heads to bed, drifting off to sleep fairly quickly. 

The next morning, sadly, Shoyo’s bribes of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and milk do not sway Kageyama (who’s a stubborn little baby) into visiting. But Monday comes (however agonizingly slow the wait was) Kageyama does let Shoyo hold his hand and answers all of Shoyo’s million weird questions. 

He does however ask about it though, after their afternoon practice, as they walk home together. “Why are you asking me so much stuff, weirdo?” Kageyama flicks Shoyo’s temple. 

“Because there’s so much I don’t know about you!” Kageyama tilts his head, blinking at Shoyo in confusion. 

“Take your time then. Not like I’m going anyway,” Kageyama shrugs. 

“Promise?” Shoyo latches onto Kageyama’s arm, nuzzling his head into Kageyama’s shoulder. 

“You’re an embarrassment,” Kageyama states. He intertwines his fingers with Shoyo’s, squeezing gently. 

Kageyama still sucks ass at taking care of people. He’s blunt and awkward and has absolutely no clue how to read the room. But...he’s pretty good when it comes to Shoyo. 

Shoyo tells him as much, a few months later when he’s thinking about it again. “It’s because we’re soulmates, obviously,” Shoyo explains and then Kageyama tries to smother him with a pillow so Shoyo can’t see his blushing face and he’s calling Shoyo an _“embarrassing dumbass_ , _”_ again but Shoyo knows he’s saying it fondly and adoringly because he’s been promoted from Resident Kageyama Interpreter to Kageyama’s (Super Awesome) Boyfriend. The hours are longer and it’s quite a demanding and high-maintenance job (i.e. requiring the ability to save oneself from the clutches of Natsu’s Hello Kitty pillow that’s currently being shoved in his face by the boyfriend) but Shoyo supposes the benefits are totally worth it because like after Kageyama stops trying to suffocate him he’s pressing kisses all over Shoyo’s face and they get to cuddle and stuff so Shoyo counts it as an overall win. 

🏐 💖🏐 

**Author's Note:**

> not depicted: shoyo meeting kageyama's sister and then HE's the favourite and kageyama is a pouty baby about it. 
> 
> please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts! 
> 
> find me on tumblr @spider-momo <3 or on my [twitter](https://twitter.com/petiteshoyo)


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